The Paul B. Magnuson Professorship of Bone & Joint Surgery

Paul B. MagnusonEstablished in 1974 through the bequest of Laura T. Magnuson, the widow of Paul B. Magnuson, MD, the Professorship honors the memory of the distinguished alumnus of the Perelman School of Medicine Class of 1908, a leading bone and joint surgeon.

After graduating from Penn, Dr. Magnuson moved to Chicago, where he gained worldwide acclaim as an orthopaedic surgeon. He was Chief Surgeon for the Chicago Junction Railroad, the first Medical Director of the Illinois Industrial Commission, and the Founder of the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. Dr. Magnuson was Professor Emeritus of Surgery and Chairman of the Department of Joint and Bone Surgery at the Feinberg Medical School at Northwestern University. In 1948, he was named Chief Medical Officer of the Veterans Administration and, in 1952, was appointed Chairman of President Harry S. Truman’s Commission on the Health Needs of the Nation. Dr. Magnuson’s 1960 autobiography, Ring the Night Bell—An American Surgeon’s Story, recounts his experiences at the University of Pennsylvania.

 

LevinScottphotoCurrent Chairholder
L. Scott Levin, MD, FACS

L. Scott Levin, MD, FACS, is the Paul B. Magnuson Professor of Bone and Joint Surgery (with tenure), Vice President and Associate Dean of Resource Development, Chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and Professor of Surgery (Plastic Surgery). Dr. Levin is Board-certified in Orthopaedic Surgery and has a Certificate of added Qualification in hand surgery. In addition, he is Board-certified in Plastic Surgery.

As an accomplished clinician, his expertise focuses on surgery of the hand and upper extremity, reconstructive microsurgical techniques for extremity reconstruction and limb salvage. His research interests focus predominantly on extremity soft tissue reconstruction and vascularized composite allotransplantation.

Dr. Levin heads the Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation Program at Penn and directed the teams that performed bilateral hand and arm transplants in three adults. In 2015, as Director of the Pediatric Hand Transplantation Program of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, he led the team that performed the world’s first bilateral hand transplant in a child. 

Dr. Levin is responsible for developing the field of “Orthoplastic Surgery” and currently is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Orthoplastic Surgery. Orthoplastic surgery is the collaboration between two separate fields – orthopaedics and plastic surgery – to jointly treat musculoskeletal and soft tissue conditions.

Dr. Levin also actively participates in senior leadership activities of many international and national professional societies and associations. He has recently been awarded the coveted Kappa Delta Elizabeth Winston Lanier Award which recognizes scientific advances and research contributions in orthopaedic surgery. This is one of the most prestigious honors within the field of Orthopaedic Surgery. 

Previous Chairholders

  • Edgar L. Ralston, MD 1974–1977
  • Carl T. Brighton, MD, PhD 1977–1995
  • Robert H. Fitzgerald, Jr., MD 1996–1999
  • Richard D. Lackman, MD 2000–2009